Electrical signal system.



PATENTED MAR. 6, 1906.

F. LAGROIX. ELECTRICAL SIGNAL SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 31. 1905 gnuanfoz UNI'IEI) QllAlTES PATENT OFFICE.

TEXAS. ASSIHNOR or ONE-HALF "r o'r'ro KOEHLER, or SAN AN'iUMU, TEXAS.

FRED LACHK'IIX. OF SAN AN"( lNlO,

ELECTRICAL SIGNAL SYSTEM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Paton teci March 8, 1906.

Application filed Jamisry I-lLlEiDfi. Serial lit 243,567.

To m1 whom it may ooncrrn:

Be it known that I, hnnn inioimix. n citi- /ien oi the United States, and a resident of San Antonio, in the county of Bcxnr and State of Texas, have invented certain new and useful improvements in Electrics] Si nnl Systems, of which the 'l'iiillowing a in l, clear, and exact description, sun-h as will ennhlc those skilled in the RH to which it appertains to make and use the some, reference being had to tho accompanying drawir1g,form ing av part of this specification.

.The invention relates to electrical signal syst-ei'ns wherchy the position of n train or other obstruction on a rnilwaptraifk can he ascertained at either terminal.

'(lisoloscd in the blocks.

to notify the engineer It more particularly relates to'the system application for patent filed by me August 29. 19(14, and which hears Serial No. 222.597. The system disclosed in the said application consists, prinnirily. oi a circuit. vohnecterl with :1 soul-o0 of eieotricity extending along the trackand divided into blocks of dilierent electrical resistance and of an indicating mechanism to show the closing of the circuit thrznigh any one of the In that system the source of eleotricity and the indicating mechanism are placed at the stations at the terminals of the track, and no particular means are employed in his cab of the condition of the'trool in front of him.

The present invention consists in employ 7 from and to the agents at the terinina s orv stations of the track. It. onsists in the novel mnstruetion, combination, and arrangement of parts, such as will he llEIQ-iibafter fullv described, pointed oi'lt in the anpendecl claims, and illustmted"in the accompanying drawing. In the drawing is shown a (liegzaiinnatioai View of an electrical signai system embodying the invention, i 1

he railway-track A has one of its rails a electrically continuous from one'end of the line to the other, the ends of the rail-sections bein bonded in any suitable manner, as at a. he other rail ais divided by the insulating breaks a into sections or blocks B B B, the number and length of which ricthe metal frame l: of

pend on the frequency of thitmins and other (llAI'IYllTllhg comiitimis ol the road. EX- tending: along tho frock is the electrica (1oni .:t imcrvals with the blocks or sections B B B by the resistancecoils C C C respectively. The ends of the condu tor are connected with the end railsections of the rail if by the wires C mnl C, respectively. tl n stance-coils are interposed the n n: U D D respectively, WhlCh controf J .he switches d d (1. These switches aroiospeii'tivoly connected with the wires E E" leading to the col'id-uctor C, and operate {=6 connect said Wires with the wires e e leading from the resistancc-coils C (3. At intervals along the track mid-rails F are placed. Th e mid -rails are generally placed at stations although they may he placed at intermediate points. 'l hcy are comps-raitiv'ely short and are eleclrirnllv connected by the wiresf with the ends of the electricallycontinuous mi] 0,. At each station where there isa i1iili8-ll a cmnluotor G leads from the end of the: electricall-y-continuons rail 0. to the adjacent end of the conductor C. Interposed in this concluotor is the magnet G for operating the switch (i controlling the cireuit G, m ssing from the battery G through the tell (3? Th switch G is nor inally in position to hreak the circuit G When it is moved to close the cironit, the bell G rings. The circuit )assing through the magnet G is controlled in the switch G and the branch wire G. At the traclvswitch H on electrical conductor H leads from the electrically-can'- tinuous rail 11 to the conductor C. The con- (lnctorH is broken, anii one end is secured to the switch-stand, as .at' h", and the other end is ronnectcd with the insuietod cont I? on the switch-stand. When the opera rig-lever 72. is thrown to close the main track to iii-Z siding, as shown in the iirawing the cir uit through the own doctor ll will he broken, and when said in: ver is thrown in the op 'iositc'rlirectioii to open the main trsok to the siding the lever engages with. the contact if and establishes the circuit through the metal frame of the switPh-stanii. the operating-lever, and the conductor H" i' nn the rail 11 to the conductor C.

Mounted on the l-' ('o|noti\'o is the shunting the trolley-wheel frame of the locomotive;

the Wire I are connected by the branch wire traction-w wound dynamo I, the field-coils I of which are connected by the wire I with the support I, of insulating material, secured to the under side of the locomotive. Movably mounted in the insulated su port is the rod I, hav 5 journaled on its lower end. The trolley-wheel is electrically connected with the wire 1*, leading from the field-coils of the dynamo. The trolley-wheel is normally pressed downward by the spring I" and is in position to engage with the mid-rails Fras the locomotive moyesalong the track. The field-coils oi the dynamo are also electricallyconnected with the tractionwheel W of the locomotive by the wire I This connection. can be made by securing an end of the wire I to any part of the metal The wire I and I, controlled by the electrical switch I.

In multiple with the main circuit of the dynamo is the circuit J. Inter-posed in the latter are the magnets J J and between the two is the coil J of com aratively high resistance. Connected wit 1 this circuit J at a point intermediate of the resistance-coil J and the magnet J is the coil J of comparatively low resistance. This low-resistance coil is connected with the electrical switch J operating to connect said low-resistance coil with the circuit J between the magnet J 2 and the high-resistance coil J A current passing through the circuit J of' suii'icient vol; tage will ener ize the magnet J to cause the whistle J to *b ow.

Interposed in the main circuit K of the dynamo is the voltmeter I. In multiple connectio .1 with the main circuit is the branch circuit Ki, assingthrough the electrical lamp K", aiul interposed in this lamp-circuit is the magnet K for operating the switch K", controlling the circuit K, assing through the battery K and the bell ii. The switch K is s ring-pressed to normally close the circuit to continuously ring the bell K.

The operation of the device is as follows: In the system there are two incomplete circuits. ne of them on the locomotive and the other extends alopg the track. The locomotive-circuit has its terminals at the trolley-wheel I and the traction-wheel W. The track-circuit has its terminals at the midrail F and the rail-section a" adjacent to the midrail. When the system is in operative I condition, these two circuits are complements of each other, and this occurs when the trolley-wheel )asses onto a mid-rail If and the heel passes onto the rail-rection a? osite-to the mid-rail. Vhe the two incomplete circuits come together. ud form a complete circuit throng out the entire system, there being no obstruction on the track, the current passing through the field-coils of the dynamo on the locomotive will pass to the extreme limit of the elec- -coil, and the switch d would trically-continuous rail a, through the branch circuit G to the main conductor 0, back to the traction-wheel W, and thence to the fieldcoils of the generator. Part of the current entering the rail-section a from the mid-rail i will pass into the branch circuit G, connected with said rail-section. The current in passing through the branch circuits G will energize the magnets G to operate the switches (1" to close the circuits (i to rin r the bells (i The ringing of the bells woulr. notify the agents at the stations at the ends of the track that a train had passed onto the same and warn them to be on the lookout. By means of the switch I in his cab the engineer could break and make the circuit through the magnets G, controlling the switches of the bell-circuits G and through the ringing of the bells could signal to the sta ticn agents.

When the circuit throughout the system is closed and there is no obstruction 0n the track, the resistance in the circuit will be such as to cause the lamp K in the circuit K in multiple with the main circuit of the dynamo to glow with a dim light. Also under such conditions the current passing through the magnet K would not be sulliciently stron to energize said magnet to move the switc i K against the action of its s iring to open the circuit K through the beil R to stopthe ringing of the latter. the current passing into the circuit J would not be sufliciently strong to pass by the resistance J to ener ize the magnet J to blow the whistle J". glow of the lamp, the constant ringing of the bellpand the non-blowin of the Whistle the engineer would know t at the track was clear. A The agent at either end of the track by closing the circuit G through the switch G and the branch wire G thereby cutting out part of the resistance of the track-circuit, could cause the lamp to "low brighter and by a system of flashes cou d signal to the en ineer.

Should there be an obstruction on the track----a train T on the block B, for an instance-then the circuit would be closed through such block. The current would pass from the electrically continuous rail-section a in said block through the wheels and axle of the train to the opposite insulated rail-section (L2. The current would then pass from theinsulated rail-section through the highresistance coil C :0 the conductor C. In doing so i t would energize the ma net D in said e moved to close the circuit through the low-resistance coil E, and the high-resistance coil would be cut out of the circuit. The resistance of this particular block bein known say thirty ohms-the indicator If registering such a resistance would inform the engineer that there was an. obstruction on that particular block.

Furthermore,

onsequently by the dim e in the .suun-t-circuii, will ovsrcome 2 ol the mil 3 in the circuit J in thv main circuit if 1kg d ggam passing thm 195 it 5 e1;- Hw nmgnet J ta: meve he switch 5* 7o *il (we hlgh-resistanc coil J and enm- Puit llarnugh Gm iuw r ihe strength if E ie rui-rm'lt passing l; l: rmistame times intru- ';5

ul tlle Hm Y the :ltteniinn 01' he engineer to 31:0 QlESllllCtlfiD an the track.

ah! the in #:xvitch il be thrown to Sc flu main trawl: t6 1'19 aiding. tlw tmrkflan-1m ll, This would Eliminate? a very Dortim (1f the rvsist am'e {rum the fit :1; 12? (35-151mm), and there we eid M a px'u mrtiazlai increase in the voltage Qi' 3 in viiiiiagc fluid muse an in hrightness'hf 329 lam 1 K, and 61::

1 0f the indiaior Vvnlklal move to {he limii a? the law reaisiam-e 11188547 wizisik would also be blown 1 shrill sound, wing: in the 3g fhrhug'h 11w branch cl- 1311151 call tlw animation a1 93 t0 {3 .9 {51H that Hwsiding was in 2: main frank. 7

if HP inwmiinn. It L obvithe prin iple invoked (RD iliil'm'vnt ways and still :dm. ribs! my invention. what Tire in sgcura b x Lmiairs Pax- 

